Sunday’s clash with Manchester City was every inch One For The Neutrals, with eight goals, some lovely football, two teams who didn’t know when to stop attacking and some VAR controversy thrown in to season the whole lot.
However, the thing with Ones For The Neutrals is that somebody has to come away disappointed and although Sunderland supporters are certainly justified in feeling down about the result itself, I feel the performance and the wider context in which the game sits can provide even the most
pessimistic among us with reasons to be hopeful.
Which brings us nicely onto the talking points…
Brian Brobbey makes his mark in spectacular fashion
Where else could I possibly start after that performance?
A frequent criticism of Brobbey centres around his finishing. His strength (more on that shortly), movement, hold-up play and ability to bring in others are all elite and what he brings to this Sunderland side is almost immeasurable at times.
As with all strikers, however, he is judged first and foremost on his goalscoring record.
I don’t think I was alone in thinking he would really kick on this season and aim for 20+ goals and although it’s taken a little while to get himself going, he has absolutely announced himself on Sunday. The World’s Worst International Break has come at a terrible time for literally everybody but for Brobbey in particular, but hopefully he’ll pick up exactly where he’s left off.
I’ve never really been an idealist when it comes to football (how could I be after watching Sunderland for nearly forty years?!), yet I wasn’t prepared for just how much I would fall in love with the Meat ‘N Spuds side of the game until I laid eyes on Brobbey. Watching him go about his business and ragdoll some of the best centre-halves in the world while barely breaking a sweat is truly a privilege.
The word “unplayable” gets used often in football but he literally was unplayable and it was as if he’d been invited to play in a ‘Dads vs Lads’ game with a bunch of Under 12s.
If his finishing did match the rest of his game, I’m not at all confident we’d ever have seen him in a Sunderland shirt — and certainly not for the £17.5 million fee we initially paid.
Enzo Le Fée runs the show yet again
For all of Brobbey’s brilliance, a performance like that is only possible when it’s backed up by what’s going on behind him.
It feels almost churlish to bury discussion of something as beautiful and perfect as Enzo Le Fée within the second section of a talking points article, but here we are. His assist and “pre-assist” (yuck) were stunning and of the quality we’re now beginning to expect from Le Magicien after his impressive start to the season.
I think Le Fée, more than anybody, really encapsulates the change in approach we’re seeing under Le Bris this season. While the points on the board would suggest it hasn’t fully clicked yet, the difference from this time last season is stark. While I would never denigrate the approach that provided such a memorable season, it felt most of our good work last year was done without the ball whereas this season we’re looking to hurt teams much more with the ball.
If we can find the perfect balance between the two, I really feel another special season awaits. If you think I’m getting a little carried away, allow me to remind you that we just created 4.61 xG at the Etihad. How do you like them underlying numbers?
The spectre of VAR lurks once again
I understand that Roker Report are contractually obliged to include a VAR controversy as a talking point so here I am fulfilling that requirement.
Firstly, it was very obviously a handball from Elliot Anderson and anyone suggesting otherwise is blatantly a City or Newcastle supporter (or Leeds and Coventry, for some reason). As we see time and time again, however, it’s the lack of consistency that’s rustling people when it comes to VAR.
A seemingly rudimentary check for that clear handball, yet they’ll spend several minutes trying to find some reason — any reason — to disallow Brobbey’s first.
I understand that they wanted to check Brobbey didn’t have any outstanding library fines before fully clearing the goal. VAR obviously wasn’t the reason we lost, but with City scoring straight after that Anderson handball, it clearly played a part.
Bloody well toughen up, everyone!
No, yesterday wasn’t perfect.
I’ve deliberately avoided focusing too much on the defensive mistakes (or even the fact we lost) as I feel those mistakes are so out of character for a defensive unit that’s done more than enough to earn our patience when they don’t have their best day at the office. I also feel a collective step back to view this match in context would be a sensible move for any fans currently feeling a little disheartened about our points tally.
In the space of eight days, we’ve gone toe-to-toe with two of the best sides in the world and for large parts of both games, we’ve outperformed them.
These weren’t “backs to the wall”, plucky underdog performances in which we got our hair ruffled — we went for it. When you add a Europa League win sandwiched in between and all of the emotions associated with that, I don’t feel anything but a mixture of pride and excitement as we go into the international break.
I know social media isn’t the most accurate of barometers when it comes to capturing the feeling of a fanbase, however, some of the reaction to yesterday’s game has been nothing short of bonkers and I genuinely feel like I’m living in a parallel universe reading some of it.
I’d planned a little section on Régis and his one hundredth Sunderland game; however, you’ll already be well served for such content across the site.
What I will say is that this being his one hundredth game perfectly encapsulated the journey we’ve taken under him. What a ride it’s been and will continue to be, and I’ll end with a Tony Benn quote I used in a previous article to kick off the season as I feel it works perfectly here:
“There is no final victory, as there is no final defeat. There is just the same battle. To be fought, over and over again. So toughen up, bloody toughen up.”
